Tag: guide

This blog is about dream meanings. Whenever someone remembers a vivid, sometimes even terrifying dream they only want to know one thing: what does this dream mean?

Cartoon: Nate Fakes

Most people who remember a dream start looking up symbols from that dream in (online) dream dictionaries.

One of the easiest ways to determine dream meanings. But a lot of people who work professionally with dreams are dead set against dream dictionaries to help you discover dream meanings.

Cartoon: Mark Anderson

I will let you in on a little secret: Sometimes I use dream dictionaries! Among psychologist and other people who work on a professional level with dreams there is a lot of animosity against dream dictionaries.

So you can decide if you are going to use it. It is your dream, you are the only one who is able to attach meaning to it. Sometimes, a little help of a dictionary can bring new unexpected depth to a dream.

Do you use a dream dictionary? Let me know in the comments.

Dream Meanings: Shaman as Dictionary

In ancient civilizations people lived in tribes. Every tribe had a wise man/woman who used his/her dreams to guide the tribe. Towards food, away from threads. To help diagnose illnesses. Dreams were told to him/her and interpreted.

The Shaman was a walking dream dictionary. Everybody agreed on the interpretation. The Shaman had this connection with the divine world that was not open for debate.

Galba, the last Tuvan ShamanPoto: David Baxendale

Dreams in those societies were seen as a message from another world. The Shaman was a catalyst who could intercept those sacred vibes and translate them into words. Understanding which plants to use, which rites to perform to give the tribe the chances to prosper.

Around 3500 BC there is evidence of written knowledge (source Wikipedia). This allowed for knowledge to become detached from ancestors and Shamans. It also allowed for agriculture to take root among the Homo Sapiens. People began to settle down.

When science came about (astrology was one of the first scientific calculating systems to help tribes deal with crops see here).

Dream Meanings: Artemidoros

One of the oldest dream dictionary we know of today is that of Artemidoros. Where the Shaman considered a dream to be a divine intervention, Artemidoros believed that dreams had to do with predicting the future.

Dream Meanings: Future, Past & Present

I am positive that you, my dear Mindfunda reader, will assume, just like I do, that dreams say something about the past, about the present and about the future all at once.

In my Mindfunda Mutual research (click the link for a free download), I manipulated the variable time. I had 15 couples, who had to meet each other in a dream. One was assigned the role as “giver” the other the role of “receiver”.

I had a couple who lived on different parts of the world. It would almost be impossible to connect on a dream, because their dream time did not overlap.

Dali

Yes you guessed correctly: this couple was successful. The dream report of the receiver clearly stated the “gift” the sender had to give this dreamer.

What is your opinion about time in dreams? Do you think dreams predict the future? Or are dreams the voices of your past?

Dream Meanings: Collective Symbols

As I have gained more knowledge on the subject of dreams the last decades, I have come to the conclusion that there truly is a collective layer of meaning that all human beings seem to be able to “tap” into at night.

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One of the best resources for this knowledge is -in my eyes- the dictionary created by Ad and Arthur de Vries.

But I know what you are going to think now. Not every dream is archetypical.
And yes, you are right. Not every dream you remember is a life-changing earth-shaking dream.

I would love to hear your opinion about the use of dream dictionaries. i know a lot of people working on a professional level with dreams like I do are dead set against it. What do you think?

Dream experts

When I discussed this on the Facebook page of the International Dream Association, most of the dream experts indicated that in their view using a dream dictionary is a sign of inexperience with symbols.

But don’t worry. You don’t have to become a walking around symbol dictionary. Just be blunt and use them if you ever want to be inspired outside of your own comfort zone.

THIS CONTENT IS CREATED BY SUSANNE VAN DOORN, AUTHOR AND OWNER OF MINDFUNDA; MAKING THE FUNDAMENTALS OF PSYCHOLOGY, MYTHOLOGY AND SPIRITUALITY EASY TO USE IN YOUR PERSONAL LIFE!

What is Mindfunda about?

My name is Susanne van Doorn, I am a Dutch psychologist, blogger and author. I have been working with psychology, dreams and mythology ever since I finished my study in psychology at Tilburg University. I made this independant site to share insights, and recent scientific articles about the brain, dreams, and mythology for use in your personal life.

This posting is categorised as Dreamfunda:
Everything you need to know about dreams. Practical How to’s, the latest scientific research, the most commonly used ways to attach meaning to dreams. This and more is given to you for your everyday use in this part of Mindfunda

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